Hair drier



G. DUCART HAIR DRIER July 27, 1937.

Filed July l5, 1956 3 Sheets-Sheet l c5..A DUCART July 27, 1937.

HAIR DRIER Filed July l5, 1956 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 July 27, 1937. Q DUCART 2,088,189

HAIR DRIER Filed July 15, 193e s sheets-sheet 3 Patented July 27, 17,937

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE HAIR DRIER Application July 15, 1936, Serial No. 90,628 In France July 29, 1935 6 Claims.

The invention relates to appliances for drying the hair, of the kind comprising a hood into which the head is placed, 'a warm current of air being then Iblown through the hood by an air fan. Although not limited thereto the improved hair drier according to this invention preferably includes a hood of the kind shown and described in my prior United States patent specification No. 2,042,592 in which the fan, housed in a casing shaped as a hood, is separated from the head by a head protector of similar shape to the hood, which is made of perforated metal, or of metal lattice work or mesh or the equivalent, and in which the fan comprises vanes or blades disposed in such manner that, during their rotation, they describe .about the head a surface of revolution, preferably hemispherical, surrounding the head of hair to be dried.

The main objects of the present invention are as follows:-

(1) To eliminate as far as possible the possibility oi noise. during use, to secure absolutely silent operation.

(2) To permit simple vand rapid fixing and unxing of the driving motor, as well as, if desired, of the electrical resistance provided for heating the air. l

(3) To enable the operator to adjust quickly, with the aid of a very simple means of observation, the speed of the fan to the desired value.

(4) To obtain the location of the head in the most favourable position within the interior of the hood.

According to one feature of the invention, the ian is located within the hood and is driven through a flexible transmission drive by a driving motor disposed outside and dis-associated from the hood.

Preferably the fan is substantially cup shaped to conform with the. interior shape of the hood and partly enclose the head and is separated from the head by a wire mesh guard attached to the mouth of the hood, whilst the hood is mounted on a tubular standard mounted on a base plate and bent over at the top, the exible drive from the driving motor passing into the .hood through said standard. 'I'he standard may be enlarged at one point to form a casing within which the electric motor is contained.

According to other important features of the invention the driving motor is resiliently mounted on its support with the aid of trunnions engaged in sleeves of rubber, or the like, carried by the motor support, whilst the terminal portion of the flexible driving shaft carrying the fan is insulated from the supporting parts connected to the casing, by a sleeve of rubber, or the like.

According to still another feature of the invention the appliance may include means for controlling the speed of the driving motor, and disposed in the hood in the sphere of iniiuence of the fan, a movable member which when the motor is rotating at the correct speed is moved by the air current so that an indicating lever appears at a window in the hood.

Neck supports adjustable as to their spacing apart may be mounted at the mouth of the hood to ensure correct positioning of the head in relation to the hood.

The invention will be better understood with the aid of the following description of one construction of hair drying appliance according to the invention, which construction is diagrammatically illustrated, solely by way of example, in the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of the drier.

Fig. 2 is a front View thereof.

Fig. 3 is a View showing the resilient mounting of the driving motor in its casing.

Fig. 4 shows the method of mounting the fan on the end of the exible cable.

Figs. 5 and 6 show, in vertical and horizontal section respectively, the casing of the electrical resistances'.

Figs. 7, 8 and 9 are views, respectively in vertical, longitudinal and transverse section, and in horizontal section of the anemometric pendulum device for regulating the speed of the fan.

Fig. 10 is an under plan view of the mouth of the hood, showing the neck supports, and

Fig. 11 is a sectional view of the said neck supports.

In the drawings, I is the exterior casing of the hood, 2 the fan shaped as a hemispherical cup and 3 the head protector of sheet metal or metal lattice work, and 4 is the electric motor operating the fan 2 through the intermediary of a flexible transmission cable 5 housed within a rubber sheath 6.

'Ihe motor 4 is provided (Fig. 3) with peripheral projections or trunnions 'l rotatably engaged in sleeves 8 of rubber, or other iiexible material, fastened to the demountable casing 9 and insulating the motor from the casing. The latter is in this example solid with the supporting foot l0. The motor 4 may be mounted in any otherI position,y for example fixed on the Wall.

At its other end (Fig. 4) the flexible cable 5 is fixed in an axis pin Il on which are fastened, by means of clamping nuts l2, I3 and lock nuts I4, the fan 2, and a cup I5 for preventing the spurting of lubricating oil into the interior of the hood.

'I'he nipple I E of the axis pin II is insulated from the support I1 fixed to the upper casing I8 by means of a rubber or other resilient sleeve I9.

The upper casing I8 serves to receive and support, on`the one hand the electric resistance for heating the air, and on the other hand the rheostat for controlling the speed of the driving motor.

The mounting of the heating resistance 20 is so arranged that it may be easily removed and replaced without any need for touching any conducting wires, nor the driving part of the fan.

The resistance 20, may be of any suitable kind,V

and, in the example illustrated in Fig.6, is in the form of two Us perpendicular to, one another, and it is lodged in a lateral part I8a of the upper casing I8, closed at its two ends by removable plugs 26 and 26a provided with perforations 2I for the entry of air, which penetrates similarly through the openings 22 of the lateral casing I8a. Each of the branches of the U constituting the resistance 20, ends in a male contact pin 23 engaged in a corresponding female part 24 receiving the conducting wire (not shown). A connecting piece or bridge 25 supporting the branches of the resistance 2n, is solid with a rod 21 having a threaded end passing through the plug of the casing 26 and receiving on the outside a milled knob 28. 'I'he female parts 24 on the other hand are supported by a bridge 29 on which they are xed, through the intermediary of insulating washers 30, by means of nuts 3l and milled knobs 52.

It will be readily appreciated that to take out the heating resistance 20 it is only necessary to unscrew the milled knob 28, and having thus freed the rod 21 to remove the plug 26a and to draw the resistance out.

As regards the rheostat 32 (Fig. 6) housed in the casing I8 which supports it, the operating lever 33, on which is xed the slide 34, is mounted for rotation about the central spigot Ib of the casing so as to be capable of displacement in an arc of a circle. To avoid entry of air through the slot 35 provided in the casing for the passage of the lever 33, a circular shutter 36 is mounted on the said lever.

This arrangement of the rheostat fully econ omizes in space, and, further, the position which it occupies assures its efficient cooling, assuming that it is located in a zone from which the fan draws air.

To permit the operator to regulate the speed of the motor to the desired value determined by the maker, the hood comprises, in the space between the exterior casing and the head protector 3 an anemometric pendulum 31 (Figs. 1, '7, 8, 9) mounted for free oscillation about an axis 38, and comprising, at one end, a part 39 constituting an indicator whilst at the other end is provided a counter-weight 40. The current of air produced by rotation of the fan 2 determines the displacement of the pendulum 31 and it is sumcient for the operator, in order to cause rotation of the Ian at the desired speed, to adjust the rheostat until the indicator 39 appears at `a Window 4I in the casing I.

As regards the correct positioning of the head within the hood, this is obtained with the aid of the neck supports 42 (Figs. 1G and l1) which are 'provided with trunnions 43 fitting in sockets 44 mounted in the crown 45 supporting the head protector 3, the fixture of the neck supports 42 in the correct position being ensured by a clamping screw 46. It is thus possible, by altering the spacing of the neck supports 42, according to the shape and dimensions of the head, to centre the latter within the interior of the hood. Preferably, the crown 45 is internally of oval shape.

To facilitate control by the operator, the rod of the rotating switch 41 controlling the passage of current in the heating resistance 2li, as well as for starting the motor 4, (Fig. 1), is solid with a rotating disc 48 carrying translucent and coloured indicators 49, illuminated by a lamp 5U lodged within the interior of the switch box, and appearing at a window 5I in the said box. The diierence of colour of the indicators and the lighting of the lamp 50 enables the operator to see immediately if he is working cold, or with moderate heat, or with full heating.

It is to be understood that without departing from the spirit of the invention, various modiiications and improvements in detail may be devised, apart from the simple use of equivalents of some of the parts.

I claim:

l. Hair drying apparatus comprising a standard, a hood carried thereby, a fan in said hood, a casing on said standard remote from said hood, a. motor in said casing, and provided with trunnions, flexible bearings in said casing rotatablyl supporting said trunnions and insulating said motor from said casing, and a flexible drive disposed in said standard and connecting said motor and fan.

2. Hair drying apparatus comprising a hood,4

opening and disposed in the sphere of iniiuence of said fan so as to be moved by its air current to a position wherein a portion of said member is visible through said opening when the fan is rotating at a desired speed.

4. Hair drying apparatus in accordance with claim 3 characterized by a pivot for said movable member, and a counterweight carried by said member.

5. Hair drying apparatus comprising a hood, neck supports carried by said hood, and means to mount each support for swinging movement toward and away from an adjacent support.

6. Hair drying apparatus comprising a hood, neck supports carried by said hood, and each comprising angularly disposed members one of which constitutes a trunnion, a socket for receiving said trunnion so that the other member may have a swinging adjustment, and means to engage said trunnion to maintain said other member in adjusted position.

GUILLAUME DUCART. 

